<
Jul 28

Email marketing has two major fields of thought concerning opt-in lists versus permission-based emails. With today’s advanced technology, email carriers have junk email detectors that are more refined than ever, and priority programs like Gmail’s Priority Inbox makes it even harder to get your emails seen by your customers.

Opt-in emails have been successful in the past, but today, many prefer direct marketing with opt-out options. Both can have results, but you should research both options before starting an email campaign. Look for pros and cons for each process, and look to see where the trends are heading to make sure that your campaigns are as successful as it can be.

Email Template Pro has many Opt-In email templates for free download that provide colorful, professional, and customizable designs for your email campaign.

Jul 21

2011 will bring new trends and changes and technology, and your email campaign should adjust to remain current. Although 2011 is halfway over, it is not too late to consider how your campaign fits into these trends.

According to Chad White for Email Insider, five of the top predicted trends in 2011 include adapting to Facebook Messages, designing emails for mobile devices, Share links, reactivating inactive customers, and permission-based email marketing.

These trends require some campaign editing. Facebook Messages and mobile devices may alter the way customers see or want to see emails, so adjusting to this trend is necessary to maintain your customer base. In addition, adding the ability to “share” email content is another important way for your customers to connect to your business as well as share with friends your products, specials, and anything else in your email. The last two trends are dependent more on campaign management and making sure that you are getting your emails to all the customers you want to.

Staying current with email trends is vital if you want your campaigns to succeed, so stay up to speed so your campaign, and thus your sales, don’t lag behind.

Jul 14

Email campaigns can be more affordable than mailouts (and better for the environment) or expensive radio or television advertisement campaigns, but to get the most out of your money, you should shop around your options to make sure you choose the best package for your purposes.

If you have not been using email campaigns or templates, there are several free options. Email Template Pro offers free templates to implement on your own, and some sites, including StreamSend, give users a free trial period to try out the service. Once you complete the trial, then you can decide if the service is worth it.

Aside from free options, if you are not planning email campaigns of great volume, then per-campaign pricing may be right for you. Companies like CampaignMonitor.com offer per-campaign pricing that starts at just $5 for one campaign, with additional pricing for the number of recipients. If you only send messages out occasionally for special events of holidays, than a per-campaign pricing is an easy and affordable way to implement campaigns to see the results without making a big investment.

Jul 6

An important part of understanding how successful your campaigns are is understanding your “open” rate. According to ConstantContact.com, the open rate can be measured by how many emails are opened by how many emails are sent or bounced.

The article also goes into more detail about other open stipulations. For instance, if the email is text only, no template, no images. They also say that there is no right open number; there are many elements to consider.

You can find the article and all of the information here. If you are not receiving the conversion rates you are wishing for, the open rate could be an indicator.